Poland's experience as they went through the various Olympic qualification tournaments made them stronger
Tokyo, Japan, June 2, 2016 – Poland coach Stephane Antiga went through a difficult and long process to qualify to the Olympic Games, and their experience at the qualification tournament have made them a stronger team, while Venezuela coach Vincenzo Nacci have felt improvement in their game.
Poland coach Stephane Antiga: “This was a long process with many tournaments and matches - more than 20 matches. We finally qualified. It was a long road for us. We are a stronger team because of this experience. We wanted to qualify today. I'm very happy with the players.”
Poland captain Michal Kubiak: “It is an amazing feeling to go to the Olympics two times in a row. It's a dream come true. We could not qualify through the World Cup or European Championships but finally we are going to the Olympics. We won five matches in a row although our level was not so well. Now, we will go to Rio and try win there.”
Venezuela coach Vincenzo Nacci: “We did pretty well. Our rhythm and ball speed were good. Poland are a strong team and we could not cope with them. We need to improve on our counter-attack.”
Venezuela captain Kervin Pinerua: “It was a tough match against the world champions. Venezuela made fewer mistakes than usual. What we have to do now is work harder for the next competition.”